My ShinigamiFriend's Wedding
by kipu
Summary: Byakuya's decided that Rukia needs to get married. "It's time you married a noble." HE's away on a mission and has no idea what an uproar Rukia's upcoming nuptuals are creating. Will he get there in time to tell Rukia how he feels? IxR
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **This is a little teaser for my upcoming story. I was thinking it may become a two shot, but I felt like it had the potential to be a several chapter story. Leave me some reviews tell me if I should continue on. I'm basically going to continue if I get a decent amount of responses. I have high standards when it comes to the amount of responses I receive.

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach or it's characters.

* * *

**Prologue **

Rukia stared at her reflection, barely able to comprehend what was happening. Her ebony locks were pulled back into a loose bun and pinned up to expose the gentle architecture of her neck. The old woman bustling around her, taking measurements and pinning fabric was the one who'd suggested the hairstyle. She wanted the kimono to accent her 'delicate features'. The fabric was bulky, but surprisingly light. There were other women there, helping the old woman, pinning, writing numbers down, swirling around her in a nauseating pace. The women were chirping around her, telling her how pretty she would look when the kimono was complete. The kimono was a shade of white that accented her skin in a way that made her appear ethereal. It was a beautiful kimono, but it was a horrible situation.

Byakuya stood off to the side silently, his mouth pressed into an thin even frown, he wasn't even looking at her. He simply stood there silently. It was his fault she was here and it was his fault that she was in this situation. She hadn't told anyone yet, but she was sure that it would be all over Soul Society soon.

_It came from no where. It felt like some sort of dream. _

One minute she's the Captain of the 9th Division and the next she's the fiance of someone she hadn't seen since she was in the academy.

_She was getting married. _

Her only concern was that he wasn't there to intervene. Hell, he might even miss the entire courtship, engagment and even the wedding. He just HAD to be the new Captain of the 5th Division. He just HAD to decide to be on a mission away from any form of communication. He wouldn't even know that it was really him that she wanted to marry.

xXxXxXx

_Rukia stood patiently before her adoptive brother's desk. He'd summoned her a few minutes ago, saying that he had to discuss something important with her. Now she was here, simmering in discomfort while her brother seemingly ignored her. The only sound in the room was the pen scratches as he signed paperwork. The seconds seemed to drag on as Rukia continued to stand uncomfortably._

_"It's your duty to marry a noble." Byakuya said, breaking through the uncomfortable silence. His dark eyes still locked onto his paperwork. "As the youngest member of the Kuchiki family, it's your responsibility to keep the line of nobility intact." _

_Rukia fell into a chair, staring open mouthed at her adoptive brother. She swallowed thickly, she didn't like the turn this conversation was quickly taking. "But you didn't marry nobility." She croak weakly. It was obvious nothing would change whatever Byakuya had decided. _

_"You accepted this as a possibility when you became a Kuchiki." He looked up at Rukia for a moment and paused before saying the one thing that could ruin Rukia's future happiness. "A man has been chosen and the Kuchiki elders have approved. " _

* * *

**A/N**: So that was the teaser/prologue, what do you guys think? Should I continue. It seems kind of cruel to leave it like that. Can you guess who the man she was talking about when she was getting fitted? *wink wink* I think it's pretty obvious.. At least to me.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I'm totally mean. I really had no idea who the fiance was when I wrote this. Thanks for the ideas. :P.

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My Shinigami-Friend's Wedding

Chap 2

It wasn't that her fiance was a bad person, in fact he was a good friend of Renji's. He was just very quiet and she didn't remember socializing with him much in the past. If they did socialize in the past, he obviously didn't leave much of an impression on her. So essentially they were strangers. And it was like he was constantly followed by a dark cloud because he always looked a little sad. Her fiance was sitting in front of her now, they were on a "date" and they had yet to really talk to one another.

"Is your food good?" He suddenly asked, startling Rukia out of her thoughts.

"Yes. Thank you." Rukia said looking up at him with a smile, then looking back down to her food. She was pushing her food around on her plate in a bored fashion. "Izuru, how do _you_ feel about the... situation." Her fiance looked up at Rukia, a gloomy look on his face.

"It's not ideal." He said simply, his face set in a deep frown and he resumed eating. Rukia had a feeling when they married this was how they'd pass their meals. Three sentences, then the conversation was over.

"But, why don't you say anything, have you objected?" Rukia asked quietly.

The man looked up at her his blonde hair hanging down over one of his eyes, "When you marry, be it to me or anyone else, you will no longer be a Kuchiki. You'll be bound to your husband's family. You can always argue that to the Kuchiki's. But I will always be part of the Kira clan and bound to it."

Rukia frowned slightly and pushed aside her plate. "Why didn't you go with him on his mission? Does he know?" She swallowed hard, dreading the answer.

"He doesn't know."He smiled down to the woman. "He wanted someone here to take care of the post here in Soul Society. Your secret's safe."

"It's no secret Izuru. Half of Soul Society will know soon enough."

xXxXxXxXx

"How was dinner?" Byakuya asked Rukia after she entered his office.

"Fine." She glared at her brother. This was the first time she'd shown even a slight amount of disrespect to her brother. "He was a perfect gentleman."

"Good." Byakuya knew she was angry, he knew she was grieving, but there was nothing he could do. The elders had decided with the Kira elders that it would help to increase the status of Kira family if alligned with the Kuchiki's. And the Kuchiki's thought that Kira would be a good match for Rukia. There was nothing he could say or do that would change that. He wouldn't explain it to Rukia, because it would just upset her even more.

"Do you need anything else Brother?" He dismissed the woman and was left with his thoughts.

xXxXxXxXx

"Don't you want to participate in the preparations of your own wedding?" Byakuya asked his adoptive sister curiously.

"No." She replied, her eyes betraying her sorrow. "Just arrange to have it done." The bite of her statement stung.

"You will arrange your own wedding. And you will do it with the help of your future husband." Byakuya ordered. Rukia's eyes widened with surprise and she nodded. With that, Izuru and Rukia met in her office to begin wedding preparations.

Izuru watched as Rukia angrily flipped through stacks of papers. He could practically see the steam flowing out of her ears. "Let's try to make the best of this." Izuru quietly mumbled. Rukia looked over at the lieutenant and he continued in a more confident voice. "I don't want this any more than you do, Rukia. But I promise I'll always treat you well and always back you up in whatever you want. I know I'm not him, but maybe one day we can be friends."

Rukia smiled to the man. He may be quiet, he may not have made an impression before, but she had the feeling they were already becoming friends. "Thank you Izuru. What do you think of this color for the table cloths?" Rukia pulled up a swatch of colors and presented it to Izuru.

xXxXxXxXx

Ichigo was inside his tent, leaning back and staring up at the ceiling. He'd been away from Soul Society for a month now and it'd been awful that he wasn't able to communicate with anyone. This was one of the longest periods of time that he hadn't talked to Rukia. When they became Captains they would lounge around all day in each other's offices. They would play cards, he'd criticize her drawings, she'd call him an idiot and everything was how it should be. He'd annoy her and she'd deflect it with a sharp remark. He was her best friend, after all the crap they'd been through together there was no way they couldn't be best friends. He remembered the day she'd asked him to come to the Soul Society to be a shinigami there.

_"It would be a great opportunity." She'd said with an expressionless face. "You'd be able to learn about the world of shinigami, about what we do, how we live, what goes on beyond fighting hollows and Aizen." She was fiddling with her shinigami robes._

_Ichigo smirked. "If you want me to go with you just ask." _

_Rukia's face reddened and she glared at the smirking substitute shinigami. "I'm not asking you to come with me, idiot. I'm saying that it would be a good chance for you to learn." _

_"Then sure. Why not?" He shrugged nonchalantly. _

_Rukia sighed impatiently. "It's not a simple question. You have to think about it. You're going to be gone from the living world for weeks, possibly months at a time. Away from your family and human friends. If a division decides to take you, you'll be bound to that division and do whatever that Captain and Lieutenant want." _

_"Eh, they can deal with it. If you think I oughta go live in Soul Society, then I'll do it."_

_Rukia rolled her eyes and grumbled something before disappearing. Ichigo smiled as Rukia stomped away. _

Ichigo was beginning to regret setting up this entire mission. He was far from home, far from anything entertaining and he was bored.

"Captain Kurosaki." A mild voice called from beyond his tent opening.

"Ya?" An unseated member of his division entered. "What do you need?"

"We've surveyed the area and it doesn't appear there are any hollows left in the area. We've already double checked."

"Good." Ichigo sighed with relief. "Start spreading the word that everyone should start packing up." He grinned. "We're going home."

xXxXxXxXx

There was a big banquet being held tonight where the the Kuchiki and Kira families would be together. After tonight, everyone would know that Rukia Kuchiki and Izuru Kira would be married. Rukia swallowed hard as she eyed herself in the mirror. She was wearing a kimono, it was light pink with a pale blue obi. Byakuya knocked and entered her room. Observing his adoptive sister he couldn't help but notice the strong resemblence to her sister.

"Are you ready?" Byakuya asked calmly. She looked so tiny and sad that Byakuya had the urge to call the whole engagement to Kira off, but he knew he couldn't do that. He had to think about the impact on the family as a whole, not just Rukia.

"Of course not, but I don't really have a choice." The pair walked down to the courtyard where the banquet would primarily be held. There were lamps illuminating the courtyard and the fresh scent of flowers permeated the area. There were a lot of people, many of whom Rukia had never met. Izuru spotted her from across the courtyard and approached Rukia.

"You look lovely." Izuru complimented with a small smile. Byakuya excused himself to go talk to a member of the Kira family. "Are you ready for this?" The lieutenant asked once Byakuya was out of sight.

Rukia frowned deeply. "No. Are you?" Izuru shook his head negatively. He gained a far off look and lead Rukia further into the courtyard.

The night progressed well, the families seemed to get along well and now it was time they officially announced the engagement. Byakuya and Izuru's grandfather got the attention of the entire group.

"As you know, we have wanted to align ourselves with a noble family for quite some time." Izuru's grandfather said. "We have been blessed that Rukia Kuchiki, youngest member of the Kuchiki family has accepted my grandson Izuru Kira's offer of marriage."

Izuru and Rukia looked at one another with surprise, "They're making it seem like we did this on our own." Rukia hissed.

Izuru's eyes darkened as he looked at his grandfather. "They don't want to make it seem like they're forcing us to marry."

"Welcome to our family Rukia." Izuru's grandfather said before the crowd then ended the speech.

"They're trying to protect how they look, while secretly forcing us to marry? I can't believe it." Rukia grumbled then clenched her fists.

xXxXxXxXx

It was late by the time the 3rd Division entered Soul Society. Ichigo grinned as he walked the streets towards his Captain's quarters, it had been a long month since he'd slept on a bed. After sleeping in a tiny tent for an average of 3-4 hours every night and fighting hollows the rest of the time he was exhausted. Tomorrow he'd surprise Rukia by showing up in her office, but tonight he was going to take a really long shower then go to bed. Tomorrow was gonna be an awesome day.

xXxXxXxXx

Rukia was not looking forward to today, it was the day after the banquet and everyone was sure to know about her engagement now. She crawled out of bed and took her time in getting ready to go to her office. Today was not going to be a good day, she could feel it. As she walked to her Division's headquarters she was stopped several times from people offering their congratulations or others expressing their surprise.

_"Wow, Captain Kuchiki I didn't even know you and Lieutenant Kira were even dating!"_

_"I always thought you and Captain Kurosaki were an item."_

_"If you're marrying Lieutenant Kira does that mean that Captain Kurosaki is single?"_

_"I never saw this coming."_

'It was a big surprise to me too.' Rukia thought to herself bitterly. It was still early in the morning, but she was already debating whether or not to even show up at her Division. What irritated Rukia the most were the ones who asked about Ichigo. The ones asking if he'd need any comforting, if he was single, or what his favorite food was. 'Idiots.' She thought to herself angrily.

xXxXxXxXx

'Everyone's being really weird.' Ichigo thought to himself with a scowl. Every person he'd passed so far was staring at him with the weirdest looks on their faces as he passed by. At first he thought that there was something on his face, or his shirt was on backwards or something... But he kept checking himself every time he saw anything reflective, but there was nothing. Even now Hanatarou Yamada was staring at him, with his mouth open as he passed.

"What are you staring at!!!" Ichigo yelled, causing everyone around him to avert their eyes. "What is wrong with all you people!!! A guy can't be gone for a month without everyone acting like freaks?!?!" The Captain stomped away.

Hanatarou called out after him and waved. "Sorry for your loss Captain Kurosaki."

"What the hell is wrong with these people?" Ichigo grumbled as he continued towards Rukia's office.

xXxXxXxXx

"Morning Captain Kuchiki." Lieutenant Hisagi greeted when Rukia walked through the door.

"Morning Hisagi. When are you gonna get some sleeves?" She joked lightly, attempting to change the negative turn her day had been taking. The man shrugged.

"Whenever my arms stop looking so damn buff? Rangiku swung by, she wanted me to remind you there's a meeting for the Shinigami Women's Association later this afternoon." Rukia groaned. "I told them you were busy."

"Thanks!" Rukia laughed. "I hate those meetings."

"I know. I gotta go do some training so I'll see you later." With a single wave Hisagi took off. Rukia began to read some paperwork on her desk when her door swung open slowly.

"Hisagi. We are not taking an early lunch to go drink sake." Rukia replied without looking up from her paperwork.

_"Yo."_

Rukia's pen fell from her fingers as she felt a familiar reiatsu encompass her.

* * *

A/N: That was Chapter 2. I know it kind of seems like she accepted her fate with Izuru, but think back to the Soul Society arc, she didn't really have any hope until Ichigo showed up. ;). Except some typical Ichigo freaking out scenes in the next chapter. I hope you enjoyed. If you did, please leave me a little review. Even if it's a good job or yay. I'm totally a hooker for positive reviews.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: I'm glad you all liked the story. I'm a little surprised I got that many responses to my stories. It's been so long since I've written fanfiction for anything. Ha.

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My Shinigami-Friend's Wedding

Chapter 3

_"Yo." _

Rukia stared at the tall orange haired shinigami before her. He had a smirk on his face and looked like nothing had changed. Rukia thought she was going to hyperventilate. 'Oh my God.' She thought to herself, feeling her chest beginning to constrict. 'He's here. Shit. What do I say?! Hey Ichigo, how's it going? I know you've been gone a month, but I'm getting married in a month to Izuru?' That probably wouldn't go off well. 'Hey Buddy, wanna be my man of honor at my wedding?' This was not going to be easy.

He was staring at her now. She looked like her eyes were gonna pop out of her head. 'Damn, even Rukia's lost her mind.' She was clutching her chest, breathing heavily and staring at the ground. "Rukia? Helllloooo?!" He was waving his hand in front of her eyes and getting no response. He shoved her over, but she was rooted to her spot. 'Weird.' "Maybe I should just go set out on another mission?"

"No!" Rukia said suddenly.

'Ha that got her attention.'

'Start off with the usual. Maybe we can fake the funk and pretend nothing's going on until later.' She nearly laughed. 'Fake the funk.' "You're back already."

"Ya, we got back last night. Sorry I didn't wake you up in the middle of the night like YOU usually do when you go on missions, but I was super tired." He ruffled his friend's hair. Rukia stiffened under his touch.

"It's okay." She croaked awkwardly. "You're here now."

He smiled somewhat affectionately at the smaller Captain. "I know you just got in, but I was thinking you could take a couple hours off and we could get something to eat?"

Rukia smiled slightly. "Sure." 'I'll tell him later. Just let me enjoy this, please.'

xXxXxXx

They walked back to the 9th Division's headquarters, when a few people began to stare once again. Rukia cringed, hoping that no body would say anything.

"What are you all staring at?!?!" Ichigo growled, causing people to scurry off like mice. "They've been like this every single time I walk by. It's like NO ONE HAS ANY MANNERS." He yelled out so that everyone could hear him.

"Weird." Rukia stated in a slightly worried tone..

"I know. Fuckin' crazy ass people." They approached the 9th Division and Rukia stopped in front of the building.

"Are you going to your division?" Rukia asked nervously hoping that she could delay the news even longer..

"Nah, I think Izuru's got a hold of it. He's pretty good at keeping everything together." He said with a smile. "So I got all day to annoy you."

"Okay." Rukia smiled awkwardly.

xXxXxXxxx

So far the day had progressed without incident, she had formulated exactly how she would tell Ichigo that she was getting married. Hopefully, the Soul Society would not be blown up when she told him. First she'd sit him down. She'd hand him a glass of water for some reason, maybe something stronger, like a bottle of sake. Then she'd say that he's an awesome friend and always would be, then she'd say 'I am getting married.' Then she'd explain that while it wasn't what she wanted, she had to because she was a Kuchiki. He would probably freak out then ask who. She would say it's Izuru. Then he'd go ape shit and then she'd figure it out from there.

_**Knock Knock**_

"Captain Kuchiki?"

"Come in." Rukia said, a meek little unseated shinigami came into the room with a nervous smile. Her face paled further when she saw Ichigo lying on her Captain's couch.

"If this is a bad time, I can come back." The girl said, with a worried look at the 3rd division's captain.

"No, now's fine." Rukia assured the girl with a comforting smile.

"I-I-I..."

"You..." Rukia prodded gently.

"I-I-I..I ha-a..."

"Spit it out!" Ichigo barked from the couch.

"I have the menu for the engagement dinner on Saturday." With that the shinigami placed the papers on the ground and ran out of the office.

_**Silence_**

You could hear crickets chirping. Rukia felt her body turn cold, 'Oh my God.' Her breath caught in her throat, coming out in short gasps. She didn't even want to look over in Ichigo's direction. She waited for something to happen, but several minutes passed without anything.

"So your brother's getting remarried?" Ichigo asked nonchalantly as he reclined on her couch.

'You idiot.' Rukia thought to herself. "No..."

"Someone in your family getting married?" Ichigo pushed, his voice becoming serious.

"No..." Rukia felt the air in the room drop several degrees.

"Hisagi getting married?"

"No..." The tension was building in the room. She felt the flare of his reiatsu.

"Who then? Momo? Rangiku? Renji?" He was sitting up on the couch now, glaring at Rukia. Like he was daring her to say it. He was standing now, grasping Rukia's shoulder's tightly. His reiatsu felt suffocating. "Who's getting married, Rukia?" He growled towering over her tiny frame. Her shoulders quaked as she tried to find her voice, trying to convey the hardest thing she'd probably ever have to tell him.

The heat from his grip burned into her through her robes and when Rukia looked into his eyes, they were smoldering with tension. "I am." Her voice quivered slightly when she spoke. She braced herself for the storm that was about to come.

"WHAT?!?!?!?!" He yelled out. Rukia flinched at the anger in his voice. Ichigo raised his fist and smashed it against her desk, effectively leaving a hole through the wood. "Who the fuck are you marrying?!?!" Rukia peaked out into the hall and was surprised to see that the normally busy hall was void of all life.

"Ichigo, calm down." She attempted to sooth the angry shinigami captain.

"Hell no!!!When the hell did this happen?!" He growled. "Who are you marrying?!" He growled inbetween clenched teeth. He gripped Rukia's shoulders once again. He tried to capture her eyes with his, but she refused to look at him.

"Izuru." She whispered, her face turned away from Ichigo's. Her voice was almost lost in Ichigo's harsh breathing.

His hands tightened on her shoulders in a bruising grip "My Lieutenant?" He hissed, shaking her lightly. "You're marrying my lieutenant?!" He stared at her incredulously, "I was gone for a month Rukia!!" He angrily ran his hand through his hand, he took a deep breath. "Do you love him?" Rukia's head snapped towards Ichigo and she shook her head negatively. "Then why?"

Her eyes began to water and nearly sobbed. "It's an arranged marriage. I have to marry him." Ichigo began cursing everything and everyone. Then began pacing the office floor and destroying furniture along the way. "Could you not destroy my entire office?" Rukia attempted to joke, but only received an unamused glare.

"This is serious Rukia." He growled. She'd never seen Ichigo this angry, NEVER. "What the fuck Rukia? Who the fuck does that anymore?!?!" Ichigo yelled out punching a hole in Rukia's wall. Rukia winced at the sound of snapping wood.

"Apparently the Kuchiki and Kira families." Rukia frowned, her hand now on her hip. "The engagement was officially announced last night." Her voice was barely audible, but Ichigo heard her clearly.

Ichigo suddenly stopped pacing and asked seriously. "Do you want to get married?"

Rukia sputtered for a moment, but found what she needed to say. "Not to Izuru." She said plainly. "Not like this." Ichigo walked up to Rukia, his eyes locked her own and simply stared at her for a moment. His calloused hand came up to push her bangs from her eyes. "I _will_ fix this." His voice was determined and serious. With that he stomped out of the room, leaving a quaking Rukia in his wake.

xXxXxXxXx

Meanwhile at the 3rd Division....

_"Did you hear? Captain Kurosaki is in Captain Kuchiki's office. Rukia not Byakuya."_

_"It's so romantic. It's like a sad love story."_

_"Ya, apparently ALL of the 9th Division took off from the office because of the noise and breaking furniture."_

Ichigo stormed into his division and stood at the entrance of the door. "Izuru!" He yelled out, his lieutenant came in, looking as stoic as ever. _That_ was irritating, the guy barely ever showed any emotion. Rukia deserved something better, love, passion and excitement.

"Yes Captain." He sounded bored, but inside the Lieutenant was anything but calm. He had seem first hand how powerful Ichigo was when determined and angry.. He definitely did NOT want to be on the receiving end of Captain Kurosaki's sword. _Especially_ when it came down to a battle for Rukia.

The Captain put his hand on his sword and address his lieutenant. "If I have to kill you. I will." Ichigo's eyes flashed with anger, but Izuru knew that if it really came to it, he'd do anything for Rukia.

Izuru's eyes traveled on his Captain's sword. "I know that Captain." Izuru frowned and tried to reassure his livid. "I just hope it doesn't have to come to that."

"Just tell me you don't want to marry Rukia." Ichigo demanded, his voice almost pleading.

"I don't." His lieutenant assured him. "I don't want to marry her."

"Good." With that Ichigo stomped out of the room. He just wanted to make sure that this was just an arrangement, that there were no feelings involved. Rukia would NOT marry Izuru, he would make sure of it. Now, he had someone else to talk to.

_Byakuya._

xXxXxXxXx

Byakuya sat in his office, he knew Kurosaki would be here soon. Everyone in Soul Society knew that Kurosaki would see him sooner or later. It reminded him of when Kurosaki came to save Rukia from execution. The door of his office swung open and Kurosaki was visibly angry.

"What do you want?" Byakuya asked, placing down his pen calmly. "I hope you have a good reason for coming into my Division and my office unannounced and uninvited."

"You know what I want." Kurosaki stated pulling out his sword. "I've fought you before and I'll fight you again Byakuya." His shoulders heaving, his reiatsu building, he could even feel his inner hollow pushing to escape.

Byakuya scoffed. "Aren't you being dramatic _Captain_ Kurosaki?"

Ichigo rolled his eyes at the man. "This is Rukia's life here Byakuya. Don't treat her like she doesn't have a say in her life. She's an adult for God's sake." Byakuya had a flashback to many years ago, when Ichigo was still a child fighting to save Rukia.

"She is a Kuchiki. It's her duty. You know nothing about duty Kurosaki." Byakuya said seriously.

"I don't care if Rukia's a Kuchiki. You can't force her to marry someone she doesn't love." His grip tightened on his sword. "I know about duty, if you've forgotten I'm Captain to a division, I've saved Rukia before. I'll do it again. I have a duty to Rukia. I wouldn't have all this if I hadn't met Rukia."

Byakuya's eyes widened.

* * *

A/N: I left you guys a cliffy!!! Ha.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: It's been a while since I updated ANY of my fanfics. I've been plotting other fics on the side, but haven't gotten around to really scribbling or typing anything up. I'm so lazy. Bah

My Shinigami-Friend's Wedding

Chapter 4

_Last time in My Shinigami-Friend's Wedding..._

"She is a Kuchiki. It's her duty. You know nothing about duty Kurosaki." Byakuya said seriously.

"I don't care if Rukia's a Kuchiki. You can't force her to marry someone she doesn't love." His grip tightened on his sword. "I know about duty, if you've forgotten I'm Captain to a division, I've saved Rukia before. I'll do it again. I have a duty to Rukia. I wouldn't have all this if I hadn't met Rukia."

Byakuya's eyes widened.

xxxxx

"Why do you care so deeply that Rukia is getting married?" Byakuya drolled and began writing in a bored fashion. "I understand your point of view clearly Kurosaki. She is your friend and you do not want to see her forced into a situation that she does not want to be in."

"Damn right I don't." Ichigo interrupted, his hand still gripping his sword tightly.

"She brought you into this world. You're grateful. That's understandable." Byakuya put down his pen and looked up seriously at Ichigo. "Is there nothing more Kurosaki?" He wanted to smile at how angry Ichigo looked. "There is no other reason that you wish for Rukia to cancel her engagement?" Ichigo suddened blanched, then began to redden slightly. He began to frown at the implication.

"Of course not." He wanted to kick himself for being so cowardly. "I just want what's best for Rukia. I want her to be happy"

"Rukia will learn to be happy. She's a Kuchiki. She can always make the best of any situation." Byakuya scoffed. "Your desires for the best for Rukia are hardly enough for me to warrant a break in engagement. If that's all you want please leave. I have a lot of work to do." Ichigo stood there gaping for a moment, torn between his desires to beat the living shit out of Byakuya, admit his.. feelings... for Rukia or just leaving to regroup.. He opted for the latter.

xxxxx

"Brother," Rukia quietly muttered during dinner. Byakuya looked up at Rukia wordlessly. "I heard that Ichigo came to speak to you today?" Her heart beat fiercely against her chest. Obviously things didn't go as badly as they could have. Byakuya was in one piece and she assumed that Ichigo was in one piece some where out there.

"He did." Byakuya quietly placed a piece of food in his mouth.

Sometimes she hated how calm her brother could be"May I ask what he spoke to you about?" Rukia asked nervously.

"In short, he requested that the engagement be broken.. His reason being that he wanted what was best. I denied him of course. I didn't believe that was a proper reason to change everything." Byakuya looked up at Rukia to gauge her reaction. She merely sat picking at her food slightly.

"That was his only reason?" Rukia tried to keep the feelings of hurt to be betrayed in her voice.

"Yes. Do you believe he would have any other reason?"

Rukia shook her head negatively and the pair continued their dinner in silence.

xxxx

After dinner Rukia had gone to her Captain's apartments to look at the menus for the engagement dinner. Momo had come by, bringing Izuru along with her. "This one is my favorite." Izuru said pointing to an item on the list.

"Perfect. That should be great for the 5th course." Rukia said then drew a circle on the menu. "What about for the palate cleanser? Sorbet?"

"Green Apple Wasabi is definitely the way to go." Momo offered with a smile.

A knock disturbed them from their plans. "Come in." Rukia said and looked up to see Ichigo standing in her doorway.

"We'll come back, some other time." Momo offered, pulling Izuru swifting from the room. Izuru almost began to protest, but Momo just yanked on his arm more forcefully.

"Hi." Rukia awkwardly said, a tight smile on her lips, "Would you like something to drink?" She smiled jokingly. "Some sake?" Ichigo shook his head. "How was your mission?"

Ichigo laughed awkwardly. 'So it's gonna be like this now?' "Shitty." He hated making stupid small talk.

"Really? Was it at least somewhat successful?" Rukia fought herself from sighing. 'You coward.' She thought to herself. 'Just tell him that you already talked to Byakuya.'

"Let's stop beating around the bush Rukia. I know you talked to Byakuya." Rukia paled and Ichigo nearly wanted to laugh at the look on her face. "Well, what do you have to say?" He asked curiously.

Rukia's posture straightened and she batted her eyelashes aristocratically at the man. "What's there to say? Your reason wasn't good enough for my brother. I'm getting married. End of story."

Ichigo reddened, why did all the pressure have to be on him. Why did HE have to be the one to stop it? Why didn't she just say something to Byakuya? "Did YOU try talking to your brother?"

Rukia laughed bitterly. "Of course I did." Rukia hissed. "He told me that when I accepted being a Kuchiki that I accepted the 'possibility' of an arranged marriage. I knew that becoming a Kuchiki didn't come at a price. And I won't disgrace the family by refusing a reasonable request. It may not be reasonable to me, or to you, but to them it is." She looked down at the menu in front of her. "Oh, I have something for you." Rukia got up and pulled open a box on one of her shelves.

It was an envelope.

Ichigo looked at it curiously then looked up at Rukia.

"It's an invitation to our engagement party on Saturday. Please come Ichigo." Rukia pleaded.

Ichigo placed the invitation on the table. "I don't think I'll be able to make it." Ichigo ground out angrily, turning away from the tiny woman. "I have to go visit my family. They haven't seen me in a while."

"Please Ichigo." Rukia nearly begged. "It would mean a lot to me if..."

"It would mean a lot to me if you didn't get married..." Ichigo countered, he refused to look at her. If he looked at her, he wouldn't be able to deny her. Rukia wanted to just slap him up side the head. Why did he have to be so damn stubborn?

"At least think about it Ichigo?" She said in a calm voice. "Don't completely write it off. It's a big deal for both our families." Ichigo grunted in response.

"I have to go." And he left.

xxxx

Ichigo took the long way back to his own apartments. He was in no hurry to get anywhere. Today did NOT go how it was supposed to at all. He was supposed to come back, spend the day with Rukia. They would talk about what had gone on during his mission. Maybe they'd have lunch, she'd kick him in the head at some point. Then he'd go drinking with the guys.

Nope, his day did NOT go well at all.

He was gawked at like some sort of circus freak, found out Rukia was getting married on accident, confronted his lieutenant, confronted Byakuya, then Byakuya basically asked him to confront his feelings, which he couldn't do.. Then he found Rukia, her FIANCE and Momo in Rukia's apartment. Then he got that stupid invitation to Rukia and her fiance's stupid engagement dinner.

Now he's on his way back to his apartments, alone, sober and feeling pretty shitty.

Maybe it could be worse? He didn't even want to think how it could be worse. It was pretty damn bad as it was.

He just couldn't admit why it felt so.. something.. that Rukia was getting married. Ya, it was shitty that Rukia was getting forced into married, but there were feelings. He swore they were mutual feelings too. Rukia had to know that he felt... that he felt some sort of feelings for her. Feelings of.. pleasantness. He thought she had some sort of similar.. feelings for him too. It was supposed to be an unspoken sort of agreement. You don't date or get engaged or anything similar and I don't either. That's how it was supposed to go.. Didn't she know that? Didn't she know she wasn't SUPPOSED to get married because of their mutual.. feelings?

She broke the rules. At least in his eyes she did. Okay, maybe she didn't break any REAL rules.

He was gonna say something about their... feelings. One day. When the time was right. One day. Further down line, maybe even years down the line. Why did they all have to rush him. It wasn't a damn race. He didn't like being FORCED to do anything.

He opened up the door to his apartment. The first time he went on a long mission he had been gone for 2 months. When he came home Rukia had surprised him at his apartment. He didn't know how Rukia found out that he was coming home, but she was in his apartment and even had a small cake waiting for him. It was the middle of the night and somehow she had a strawberry vanilla cake with the words 'Welcome Home Ichigo' written in icing across the top. He nearly hugged her at that moment, but thought better of it. They stayed up until dawn, just talking and laughing until they both fell asleep surrounded by cake crumbs.

That was one of his favorite memories of Rukia. When she got married she wouldn't be able to do that. At least she didn't think that Izuru would be too happy with his wife spending late nights with her male friend.

Ichigo sighed deeply. He just wanted to go to bed.

xxxx

The next day Rukia took a long lunch break to go dress shopping with Rangiku, but things were progressing VERY slowly.

Rukia and Rangiku stood in the dress shop, Rangiku twirling her hair in her hand as Rukia tried on a series of dress, none which Rangiku approved. "Come on Rangiku. Pick one already. I'm getting tired of changing."

Rangiku laughed and got up to talk to the sales attendant. "Can you find me a..." Rangiku began to whisper into the attendant's ear. The attendant nodded as she whispered. "It's a formal affair, try to kind one that keeps her classy."

"What's the occassion ma'am?" The attendant asked Rukia.

"My engagement dinner." Rukia said with a frown.

* * *

A/N: Ok, that was chapter 4. It was pretty short.


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